Shards
by Larania Drake
Summary: In another world, on the continent of Faerun, Sakura begins a quest. After her village is attacked, she gathers companions to her. They begin searching, not for feathers, but shards. AU/Fusion hints of Sakura/Syaoran, Kuro/Fai and eventual oddcouples
1. Chapter 1

**Shards**

Disclaimer: Tsubasa Chronicle belongs to CLAMP and NWN2 belongs to Obsidian Entertainment.

Pairing: Hints of Syaoran/Sakura and Kurogane/Fay. Possibly some odd pairings later on.

A/N: This will be pertaining to how NWN2!Sakura became Knight Captain.

Summary: In another world, Sakura begins a journey to search for the Shards of a broken sword, and with it, find her destiny. Yet during this, she is plagued by dreams of another life and another world.

Being from West Harbor, in the Mere of Dead Men, meant that Sakura carried around a certain reputation. Some people actually called it a smell. (Unsurprising, given that the entire area was swamp.) Living in such an unforgiving place meant that the people there had to be tough, practical and self-reliant. On the side, outsiders always seemed to think they were itching for a fight.

That reputation was why she was standing out there now, in front of the Weeping Willow Inn (the only Inn on this road _at all_) on the road to Neverwinter, with a pack of three men circling her like hungry jackals. Sakura had her bow in hand, unstrung. Any other weapon she had was in her bag, which had been dropped when they had shoved her out of the inn door. Given her options, she figured that she could cast a few spells before getting to a safe distance. She was not that strong, but she could use the stave as a club if necessary…

She narrowed her eyes. They had demanded 'toll' for keeping the road safe. As if she hadn't already snuck past swamp beetles and knew first hand that no one did the patrolling.

And more to the point, she just couldn't let this go. She was a _Harborman_, and when they started insulting her village they deserved at least a thumping. She quickly readied a spell of sleep, and surreptitiously reached for her bow string.

Her move didn't go unnoticed. The largest of the group brought out a short sword, while the others started cracking their knuckles. Seemed that it would be sleep first, and then-

Sakura had dealt with the Mossfields, the West Harbor bullies, her whole life. She knew that when two were in front, she had better duck.

She bobbed before dodging to the side and trying to get outside their circle and get enough space between them to cast safely. She almost made it.

A fist got the side of her face, sending her sprawling in the dirt. Gritting her teeth, Sakura lifted her bow in defense, but she never got the chance to say her spell. A shadow had come up from behind one of the goons and knocked him to the side with a sheathed blade.

The blow to her cheek had made her teeth ache, but it was no worse than anything she had gotten in battling for the Harvest Cup this past year. She managed to land a solid jab to the gut of one of her opponents before rolling way to get her bow strung. It was a move that was so familiar that even going through the motions of placing it behind one of her legs was done quickly and efficiently, but the battle was over by then.

The three ruffians were laid out on the ground like they had been mowed. Whoever had done the bludgeoning hadn't bothered to finish them off, and for that she was grateful. There would be a time and a place for killing… but a tavern brawl was not it. If nothing else, perhaps these fellows would learn some humility from the experience. It didn't matter… because while she was happy to be rescued…

Sakura swallowed hard. This figure was huge. A black cloak covered his form, and his face was half covered by an iron helm. Two ham sized hands gripped the hilt of a long falchion. One of her arrows was notched, but she kept it pointed at the ground. While she might be able to get off a shot, maybe, she didn't want to run the risk of offending her 'benefactor' just yet.

As it was, the large man just grunted.

"Ah… thank you," Sakura began, getting to her feet. She hadn't expected a hand up, as this person was obviously no paladin. She was curious as to his help (and wondering if she should have been offended by it) and the motives behind it. She didn't go _looking_ for fights, but-

"Little girls shouldn't be out this time of night," the tall figure muttered, before turning to the inn's door. His words were curt, and she nearly sputtered as brushed past her, leaving a stench in his wake. Harborman pride wouldn't allow it. She was of half a mind to hit him with her sleep spell and leave him out here for when the three bullies woke up, but… he had helped her.

She drew a bead and loosed, letting the arrow fly past his ear.

It sank into the wood of the door stoop, and the dark clad man turned to glare at her. She gave him a weak smile. The man seemed to growl, before deliberately turning his back and continuing inside.

Strange… his eyes were _red…_

* * *

The inside of the Weeping Willow was, honestly, the only inn she could ever recall visiting. She had vague tales from the village elders, telling her of their journeys beyond the Mere, but she had to keep herself from gawking. It was lit with candles, but the air smelled sour. There weren't many people there, most like her 'benefactor' sitting at the bar and ordering a drink. Others were listening to a mediocre bard in the corner. All she wanted was a bowl of stew and a bed, and perhaps a bath if they had one. It had been nearly a week since the attack on the village, and she had been on her own ever since.

Well, not _exactly_ alone. Her Spirit Guide was ever-present, pointing out insights that she may have missed or telling her that a particular sound was important. As a spirit shaman, her ability to listen to the spirits, to bargain and understand their tales, was the source of her power. Yet she had certainly lacked for corporeal company… With one friend dead, and the other…

It wouldn't do to think about the attack too much. Ordering a meal and some watered ale, she looked over at the dark man. He hadn't spoken to anyone beyond ordering a drink and food, but he was eating ravenously. Her eyes drifted away even as her spirit guide noted it.

Perhaps here, she would get a full night's-

Her thoughts were interrupted by the door being broken down.

Cold raked her spine as her breath hitched in that one moment. Bladelings and gray dwarves crashed, and amidst the din she heard the leader shriek orders.

"The _Kalach-cha! FIND IT!"_

Confusion reigned as the other customers all stared in silence before a cacophony of terrified babble filled the room as they either jumped to their feet or tried to find a place to hide. Then there were bladed and gray figures everywhere, attacking the bystanders while a few rushed up to the second floor. Sakura had several spells retrieved, and she started to fling them with impunity. Vines wreathed up to snag the attackers. An ally was summoned but not before she realized that the dark man had already charged.

Very well- she could cover his back. Lingering paranoia had left her bow strung and she had lifted it before thinking. She loosed, letting the arrow fly to catch one of the gray dwarves through the shoulder. She flung out her hand a moment later to cast a sleep spell, catching at least one of the other dwarves in its effects. It caused the squat thing to fall, but the bladeling was still standing. Yet the dark man had it stopped, and thoroughly. Her Guide whispered, and she flung up her bow to catch yet another gray dwarf in the back.

Her jaw shook, but she managed to keep her hands steady. There was no time for regrets, or mercy, when there were lives at stake here. The few guests were stampeding to the door and the wounded were left to be trodden on. These people weren't Harbormen…

They weren't putting up a fight.

That meant she had to.

Her stomach turned as the gray dwarf charged, into point blank range… and fell to the ground as she caught him in the throat.

The wolf she had summoned earlier came back, wagging its tail at a job well done. Its muzzled was streaked red. The sight reminded her too clearly of the last battle… of the last…

She shuddered. Memories of that night had to be pushed away once more. The dark man had finished his fight, muttering as he shook his blade clean. She eyed him quickly. His enveloping cloak rippled in the back even as he stood completely still. Beyond that, he didn't look to have more than a few scratches.

"Please- someone- my husband!" a woman wailed, running down the stairs as fast as her legs could carry her. Her pretty face was bruised above a torn dress. "There are more of them upstairs!"

Sakura trotted over. "How many?"

"About half a dozen dwarves, and some of the others," she whispered.

That had to have been half of their force. "All right." Sakura tried to muster a reassuring smile. "You stay here where it's safe. I-"

The dark man strode up before she could finish, head tilted down. All she could see was his eyes underneath his helm, but she had a good idea of what he wanted. She barely made out his nod at her questioning look.

"We'll handle it."

* * *

The dark man hadn't said more than a few words to her the entire time. Her sleep spells had been effective, allowing them to defeat the gray dwarves without much trouble. The three bladelings… Well…

She looked over at her ally, who was weaving slightly on his feet.

Sakura was fully aware that she was not the most robust person, and she wore little more than a simple leather jerkin. Her arrows were effective at finding vital points when they hit… but she had used her companion as a shield more than once, dancing behind him in order to get a better advantage. He hadn't seemed to notice or care, both hands on his falchion as he cut down his opponents with single-minded purpose. As a result he had gotten a hard knock to the skull.

There might have been other wounds that she couldn't see. There had been more of them than they had thought and they had boiled out of the rooms like hornets. Or angry fire spirits. Sakura didn't want to think about it overmuch.

It was hard to tell with that cloak on him, but he was also favoring his left side. With a wince, she started to fumble for bandages. Her spells were used up and leaving her to feel like she had been turned inside out and bleached. That meant, along with her legs trembling, she couldn't have fixed a cut finger magically. But if she could still the shakes in her hands she could stitch wounds or maybe pay for a stronger healer. She owed him that much.

Her thoughts started to drift on the stairs down. The man's cloak continued to ripple in the back. Perhaps he was kicking it? But that didn't make sense. His long strides were entirely forward…

She didn't even know his name yet. Of course, he didn't know hers, but she did need to thank him properly for his help. After all, Harborman pride aside, she knew when she needed aid. And whatever his motivation-

He stumbled, and she caught sight of the blood running down his left arm. Unconsciously she reached to try to steady him-

-When his knees buckled. As he started to fall, Sakura threw herself sideways, trying to pin him against the wall. Selune knew she would never get him up if he fell, even if he would _let_ her…

His grunt of pain let her know were at least a few of his wounds were, and something thin and leathery smacked the back of her legs before slapping the wood of the stairs. The dark man grunted again, sliding down. Sakura yelped, grabbing his arm again and barely managing to hold them both up. Her legs weren't too steady and it was all she could muster to not pitch them both down the rest of the stairs.

"Are you all right?" she muttered, but it was a silly question. "Can you make it down the stairs?" Now she was sounding sensible.

There was another slap against the wood, and Sakura bit the inside of her lip. She couldn't have done it, and his hands were busy trying to hold him up…

Her Spirit Guide hiccupped. It noted something she was otherwise too tired to pay attention to now…

Her benefactor managed to nod. He straightened, and with pride that rivaled that of a Harborman, he pulled away from her to stride towards a bench. He sat down, but not before she realized exactly what it was that had been swishing around underneath his cape. Swallowing, Sakura approached with wide eyes.

It was a tail.

Long, it had to go from his lower waist to his feet, draping over the edge of the bench to fall almost lifelessly to the ground. It was faintly mottled, ending with a spade and she swallowed again. Red eyes, tail… If she concentrated, she noticed just the faintest odor of brimstone in the air around him. Her Spirit Guide twittered in the back of her mind that she had missed the signs before.

Of course, she also knew that, whatever else he was, he had helped these people here without promise of reward. He'd helped her in the fight outside without asking.

But she had never met someone with demon blood before. They were called tieflings; that was it… Most of the stories portrayed them as evil, or as crazy, as their infernal ancestor.

"Thank you," the innkeeper called, walking over to them with tankards. "I guess I should be grateful that the two of you arrived when you did. You'll always be welcome…"

The tall man grunted again. He had never taken off his helm, and Sakura winced.

"I need to look at your head," she told him quietly, as the innkeeper toddled off. There had been no deaths, for which Sakura was thankful. The wife of the man they had saved was now fusing over him firmly, but lovingly. The wounded were being looked after.

She shuffled herself between him and the rest of the common room, trying to shield him. His eyes widened when he realized what she was doing. "And you aren't going to get very far if you aren't treated."

His hands moved slowly, either from his injuries or from reluctance. She didn't know. His black helm was lifted and set to the side, and Sakura did her best to not act surprised or flinch. After gray dwarves, bladelings and lizard men… really, a tiefling wasn't that big of a surprise. She grabbed her bandages and tried to keep from staring.

His black hair was short and spiky, neatly camouflaging the two red horns above his forehead. Faint red mottling added extra shadows to his golden skin, as it moved with his hairline and over his backswept pointed ears. Red eyes, dulled with pain, narrowed at her green ones.

His huge hands looked like they could break her in half. Not that he was in much shape to do anything right now.

Still…

Carefully, she pulled out her healing kit and started looking at his wounds. They were mostly shallow, but there were a lot of them and they were messy. Only one or two required stitching.

She kept her smile to herself when she asked him to take off his armor. She took a moment to examine him. The mottling continued over his shoulders and partially down his back. Much of it was obscured by scars. Some were faint, some more recent.

"By the way, I'm Sakura. Sakura Kino," she said, glad that her hands were steady as she did her best to stitch up a wound.

"Kurogane."

They said no more words the rest of the night. She was too tired, and he offered nothing. The innkeeper eventually returned, offering beds for free, shooting nervous looks at Kurogane without his helmet on.

When Sakura awoke the next morning, he was gone.

To be continued.

A/N: Sakura and Kurogane are both level four characters (or ECL in the case of Kurogane) for those who are curious, but for the story's sake the leveling with be more or less ignored. They'll get more powerful as they go along. Kurogane is a rogue/fighter eventual weapon master. The falchion was chosen because it was a more common weapon but vaguely similar to his long sword Souhi (and gets more critical hits). Sakura as a Spirit Shaman has a weapon focus on the short bow with the zen archery and point blank shot feat. That's about as technical as I plan to get describing them unless someone asks.


	2. Chapter 2

**Shards II**

Disclaimer: Tsubasa Chronicle belongs to CLAMP, while Neverwinter Nights 2 belongs to Obsidian Entertainment and I make no money from this work of fanfiction at all.

Pairings: Hints of Syaoran/Sakura, Fai/Kurogane and eventual odd pairing.

Summary: Sakura continues her journey to Neverwinter, finding new companions and gaining new strengths. Yet there are trials that even she cannot overcome.

It was a familiar dream.

Sakura walked, and for some reason she knew that it was something about her contrary nature that caused the sound of footfalls to echo in this strangely silent place. Of course they had to be there. It was natural for footfalls to be made by feet, and as a Harborman, she wasn't going to deny when something was natural. So she made the only whisper of sound, because it was right and proper to do so.

It was empty of people, and as dry as West Harbor was wet. Sand, something she was only familiar with from muddy banks where it clung to shoes and people and was never dry, stretched outside the windows of this place. The walls were decorated in pale stone and rich fabrics, in an alien style. Everything was in curves and sweeps and odd shapes, beautiful even as it was strange.

Sakura was always herself, unlike other dreams where she was sometimes a character from a tale or even her foster father in all his elven strangeness. She stood out from the flowing curves in her usual earthy garments of leather and homespun. Feathers were braided in her short hair: gifts from her favorite air spirits. Her leather moccasins continued to slap the polished floor.

It occurred to her that she had not walked on a floor this smooth in her entire life.

Yet every time she rounded _this_ corner-

She saw herself. Maybe it was a strange reflection. The girl there had her face, her hair a bit shorter and her face so much more innocent. Her hands, unlike Sakura's, were smooth and delicate. She had never handled a bow or any other weapon in her life. White fabric (which would be murderously hard to keep clean, especially in a swamp) draped over her body. This girl was a noble, someone with wealth…

She looked just as surprised, and almost appalled, by the sight. More so than…

Sakura looked down at her chest. The scar between her breasts was obvious, wide and ugly. And somehow, she knew that the other girl did not have it.

And then she woke up.

* * *

When Sakura got up the next morning, she wasn't surprised that Kurogane had already left. Given the looks he was getting, it was probably the safest thing for all parties. Tieflings where almost never welcomed by honest folk and Kurogane was certainly not the friendliest man. Besides, for all she knew, he was headed south. She was aiming for the opposite direction. It wasn't like they had even become friends.

It didn't stop her from being lonely.

Having someone to fight with again had been comforting. Fuuma couldn't come with her, and she hadn't been able to blame him. Not after Hokuto had… So many Harbormen had been lost; far too many.

It was disconcerting when the memory only brought a lump to her throat and not the old flood of tears. Perhaps that was good. At least she could watch the path clearly now with only a few sniffles as she went on her way. According to what she had been told her next stop on the way to the city of Neverwinter was the outpost of Fort Locke.

Over the course of the day she watched the land change as she walked, becoming firmer and the entire area more cultivated, less wild and well… There were less swamp beetles. The dangers were different, certainly.

Like those wolves.

She had seen their marks, the huge prints in dried mud, and heard their baying on the wind. There were many of them. A small girl by herself was easy prey. Of course, that girl had not been trained by Daeghun Farlong, the best ranger of the Mere.

While Sakura had ultimately chosen the path of the Shaman, being raised by a ranger and having lived in the Mere meant that she was more than capable in the wilds. Knowing to stay downwind and being aware of the forest around her- as well as having a very observant Spirit Guide- meant that she had little to fear. It also meant she could take the time to enjoy the strangeness of actual dry land.

Kind of like that dream…

Her thoughts went back to it, letting her muse over the strangeness. It had been with her for years, and it was like watching someone else grow up, every time she saw the other girl. Her other self. Sometimes she fancied it was her Spirit Guide. It was a 'little Sakura,' after all, which existed solely within her.

This was one of the hilliest places she had ever been through, with a winding trail and various cul-de-sacs within them. It made sense that the wolves would have their lair back there. It was well protected. Yet she had to wonder what exactly they preyed on. Wolves, if she recalled her foster father's teaching, preferred large herd beasts.

Herd animals, deer or boar, did not leave behind scraps of blood stained cloth, like the white tatters lying on the road.

It stopped her cold. There was a blood trail- quite an obvious one- that led off the path and into broken brush. Something larger than the average animal, and given the clumsy way it had run through, probably a lost humanoid. Her mind ran through the scenario, and she dismissed it being anything other than beasts. If it had been bandits, they wouldn't have left signs on the road.

It wasn't a lot of blood. Not enough to be life threatening to a humanoid… still enough to lead the rest of the pack of her, or him. Sakura's eyes narrowed, quickly stringing her bow and setting off into thick bushes. If these wolves were man-eaters, two people had a better chance than just one.

She had a light gait, and had no trouble avoiding making excess noise while heading through the underbrush. This person's trail was easy to read, leaving bits of cloth and blood in his wake. The leaves were disturbed, and there were wolf tracks following the same path. A good twenty yards off the trail and into the forest, she heard yips and excited growls, and could see the shape of at least one wolf lying dead among its fellows. Their prey was not going down easily- and was taking shots with a crossbow.

She could hear the baying of the pack in the background as more wolves came, and she made out the distinct call of a dire wolf answering. Not much time then…

An ally of her own was necessary; plotting out her spells she summoned a wolf of her own as a distraction, before causing the others to fall asleep.

"Hey! You in the tree! Are you all right?"

A masculine voice, hoarse with pain, called back. "I believe I've been better. Do you happen to have a potion on you?"

"Yes," Sakura replied without hesitation. Her ally was already delivering the coup de grace to the fallen wolves, and she grimaced. It wasn't a kind thing, but if these creatures had gotten a taste for human flesh it was only a matter of time before they started dragging off children. It made her wish for the ability to speak with these creatures. Yet… yet this wasn't normal behavior…

The man was high up enough to avoid getting bitten, but Sakura could see the wounds on his leg and arm- wounds that were keeping him from aiming well with his crossbow and maybe casting spells. Sakura picked her way to the foot of the tree while the man started sliding down in a flutter of leaves and shredded cloth.

He was dressed in puffy white shirt under a blue leather vest that gave him some protection, but it was a least half torn from the shoulder down on his right arm. His leg was savaged on the same side. Sakura blinked when he came into the light.

Despite the fact that pain lined his face… this had to have been one of the most beautiful men she had ever seen before. White gold hair framed his face set with large, startling blue eyes. Despite his loveliness, still, quite masculine… Sakura blinked at him repeatedly as he looked up to meet her eyes.

"I believe that potion would be much appreciated..?"

Flushing, Sakura reached into her pack, not only to hand him a potion (bought with her meager funds after the bladeling attack at the inn) but to also pull out her healing kit. The wounds needed to be cleaned if nothing else. If there were bits that needed removing, the potion wouldn't be of much use. She knelt with a clean needle and some salve beside him.

To the man's credit, he held utterly still while she worked before quaffing the potion.

"Ah, that's better," he murmured, downing fluid from the small bottle. Immediately the wounds on his leg started to heal. He stood straight, and Sakura sat back on her haunches, looking up at him again. He was _quite_ pretty…

"My name is Fai," he said with aplomb, sweeping an elegant bow despite his tattered shirt. "Teller of tales and caster of arcane magics, and it is my pleasure to make your acquaintance. Might I know the name of my rescuer?"

"I'm Sakura Kino." There was something odd about this man, in the same way that Kurogane was odd. Yet there was obviously no sign of the Hells or the Abyss on him… But his ears were pointed. Not a half elf, though-

She instinctively looked to her Guide, who took him in and whispered an answer in her ear.

"A Spirit Shaman," Fai announced, having just performed his own inspection of her jerkin and equipment. "And a Harborman at that." His eyes opened to glance at her cloak. "I see why you had little trouble- considering how tough they train you lot to be. And Harvest Fair champion? That means you must be tougher than the norm."

Sakura found herself blinking again. "You're an aasimir."

"Indeed," he answered, and laughed. "A scion of the upper planes. And a humble bard, at that."

Sakura wondered if there was something about her that was drawing people who were plane-touched to her. It was rare to meet anyone who had the blood of the other worlds, or planes, in them, but she had met two in as many days. Not to mention the bladelings. The aasimir were the opposites of tieflings; they were the descendents of angels. That would at least explain his beauty.

"How is your leg?" she finally asked. Her Spirit Guide urged them to be leaving. The two of them weren't going to be enough for the rest of the pack. Sticking to the road would be better than staying out here where they could get pinned and trapped. At least there they could see pursuit coming.

"Much better. And I would not be averse to traveling together for a ways. I think that it would be to our mutual benefit."

Sakura tilted her head before nodding. Safer for them both, certainly, and his music and knowledge would most certainly be useful. She had little idea of the world outside the Mere…

"I agree." She felt a sly smile cross her face. "A city bred man like yourself could use the looking after out here."

Fai laughed, and the newly healed skin of his arm showed through his ripped shirt as he tapped his chest with his fingers. "Touché," he replied. "Having someone who knows woodcraft would be a boon. And if she happens to be beautiful, well, then, all the better."

The casual compliment made Sakura's face redden again as she sputtered, but she gave him a hand to help him stand up. There wasn't much time before they would need to be getting out of there anyways…

With any luck they would be to the Fort before nightfall, and they could sleep inside walls. She let Fai lead while covering their rear, listening with her Guide's help for danger. It bothered her- what was so wrong with those wolves that they were attacking humanoids now? Like the Lizard folk, they were usually peaceful if left to themselves, and hunting this season had not been _that_ bad…

With a little luck they avoided more wolves, but there were other things in the forest to worry about.

As they rounded a bend Fai stopped, quickly grabbing Sakura and pulling her off the road.

"It looks like the rumors I heard were right." He crouched, and gestured for her to look. A ring of four men in gray cloaked uniforms and chain shirts were standing around a tall figure in black. It took her a moment to recognize them as Neverwinter soldiers… and that it was Kurogane they had surrounded.

Her jaw dropped. She hadn't realized it was him at first- his armor and weapons were on the ground and he was dressed in a shirt and trousers, without the heavy enveloping cloak and helmet to hide his more obvious features. They were waving their blades at him, and she could make out their rather crude taunts about his bloodline. He took them stoically, dodging their blades but otherwise not making a move.

Considering that he was nearly naked she could understand his caution, but why was he just..?

"Apparently, a new commander has taken over the Fort," Fai whispered, his breath warm on her ear. "And they have been attacking travelers and claiming that they're bandits." He sighed softly. "And someone with demon blood… well, I can see why they're so eager to get him. No one will protest."

Sakura turned to him, her eyes growing wide while she shook her head. "No, he's not evil, and no one deserves to be attacked for no reason! He's helpless- I've got to do _something-_"

Fai's eyebrows went up, before chuckling softly. "Hmm. So the tales about you Harbormen are true, are they? Well… if you truly want a pet demon, let's see if we can get him for you."

With a chuckle, Fai stood up and left cover, holstering his crossbow and broke into a quick trot.

"You!"

The soldiers, and Kurogane, turned to him to him as he huffed and puffed, suddenly seeming two feet taller than he was and full of righteous indignation. "How dare you, you bastard?" he roared, ignoring the guards to stride up to Kurogane with his hands waving.

"What is this?" one of the soldiers asked, but Fai just brushed by him to land a solid slap across Kurogane's face.

"What is the matter with you?" Fai proclaimed, drama dripping convincingly from his voice as he played up his role. "You just left her, you monster!"

"You know him?" the apparently leader of the soldiers asked, still surprised by Fai's performance.

"_Know_ him?" Fai responded, whirling to poke a finger in the man's face. "This fiend left my sister at the altar! What she saw in him, I'll never know," he began waxing poetically, wringing out every ounce of emotion that he could from his lovely voice. "But she is such a kind soul. We told her not to marry him, that he was just after her dowry, or maybe her maidenhood, but the very day they were to be wed he ran! This treacherous monster wooed her with kind words- you know how girls are, always loving the tall dark, dangerous ones- and she was left heartbroken! Our mother was in tears and my poor, poor sister…"

Sakura wanted to choke, watching Fai rant and rave, but the expression on Kurogane's face was hilarious. Total disbelief at this madman who had come out of nowhere to presume something so ridiculous-

"How dare you leave Sakura!"

The sound of her name goaded her into preparing, readying several spells in order to attack. Meanwhile Fai's gesturing got wilder, and wilder, while the soldiers started to laugh at the spectacle. He even grabbed his crossbow, still waving about like a madman to threaten the flabbergasted Kurogane.

"I'm of half a mind, you baatezu half wit, to tell you to duck _right now._"

Kurogane must have suspected something was up, because he did so, letting Fai loose on the soldier behind him- and Kurogane dived to the right, trying to get to his falchion.

If she had ever wanted a signal, that was it. Sakura called vines to trip them, and then used sleep- normally effective, but these soldiers were made of sturdier stuff than the gray dwarves. Only one fell, insensate to the world, and it revealed her location.

She didn't have time to call sleep again. Fai's shot had clipped the soldier but didn't do massive damage, and the soldier was swinging his long sword towards Kurogane's unprotected back. Her bow string sang, catching the man in the shoulder. It sang again, and she caught him in the throat.

By this time Kurogane had gotten his weapon, and Fai had danced out of range. Both men acted, Fai casting a spell while Kurogane cut upwards, disemboweling his opponent, and then Fai's, which he had paralyzed. It was over in a manner of moments.

Silence descended, and Sakura swallowed hard as she lowered her bow.

It was the first time she had ever killed another human. Not the first time she had killed, no, she had been taught to hunt from an early age. Not the first time she had fought and killed beasts and attackers.

But to see another human lying there with one of her arrows through his neck…

She could feel their eyes on her as she sprinted to the nearest bushes, falling to her knees to heave what was left of her last meal. Her fingers clawed the ground at the unexpected self-loathing that followed, the questioning… and the knowledge that, even if there had been another way, it was too late now. What was done was done. Those men had been harassing travelers for money. They would have had to deal with her or someone else…

"Oi," someone called. Sakura grabbed her water bottle to rinse out her mouth, pride reasserting itself. It just wouldn't do to be weak, not now. Not when she still had her task ahead of her.

"Your first time?" another voice broke in, and a hand lightly fell on her back. Fai's voice was calming, even as it questioned.

"You had no trouble with the raiders," Kurogane replied, talking to her and to Fai at the same time. The sound of his tail thrashing against the grass got her attention and she shakily got to her feet.

"Ah- I've never had to fight humans before…"

Kurogane looked over at her, then back at Fai, who smiled sheepishly at the bright red handprint across the tiefling's cheek.

"Never had to kill them, you mean," Kurogane said, before turning back to the bodies and starting to gather up his equipment.

Sakura nodded, watching him grab his suit of scale armor. It jingled faintly as he started to don it. It was strange that he had been caught without his gear, but she really didn't know if she should mention it just yet. There was still blood on his falchion.

It also reminded her…

"You called him a baatezu?" she asked Fai as she wiped her mouth clean.

"Oh yes. You can tell from the smell- those who are descended of fiends who favor law over chaos," Fai said, and chuckled.

"And you are an aasimir," Kurogane replied, lifting an eyebrow. Said eyebrow twitched before he half lifted one hand, and quickly placed it back on his armor.

Fai started to cackle.

Sakura realized she had to be missing something. Still, it could wait.

"Are you heading for the Fort?" she asked carefully, as he continued to grab his pack. The tiefling, despite obviously being a warrior, didn't look like he had been fairing well on the road.

He grunted.

"Are you heading in the direction of Neverwinter?" she asked, and turned to include Fai in the question. The bard smiled and nodded, while Kurogane just grunted again.

"I know there is a boat that I can take from the town of Highcliff, it will get us there faster… if you would like to travel with me? At least until we reach the city?" She did not best to not sound too hopeful… but she was tired of traveling alone. "I can also promise you will eat better with me here. I know the woods well."

Kurogane's tail lashed, before going still as he finished buckling his armor. At the moment, he didn't look so devilish as disgruntled, as he replaced his helm and cloak, covering up his true nature.

"Until Neverwinter, then," he said finally, not looking at Sakura as he started to clean his falchion. "And after that, we go our separate ways."

It was the most she could hope for, and Fai continued to smile. "I have nothing better to be doing right now, and I can see a tale in the making." He clucked his tongue, before reaching into his own pack to pull out a mandolin. "I feel inspiration! The adventures of Fai Fluorite and his two companions!"

Sakura's eyes fluttered in surprise, closing her jaw with a click. Oh, well… At least she wasn't alone anymore…

Together, the three walked up one of the many hills to the walls of Fort Locke.

To be continued.

A/N: Notes on Fai- level three aasimir bard.


	3. Chapter 3

**Shards III**

Disclaimer: Neverwinter Nights 2 belongs to Obsidian Entertainment, and Tsubasa Chronicle belongs to CLAMP. I make no money from this work of fanfiction at all.

Pairings: Hints of Sakura/Syaoran, Kurogane/Fai, and eventual odd couple.

Summary: In the world of Aber-Toril, on the continent of Faerun, Sakura begins a journey to gather silver shards that hold the key to her destiny. On the way she gathers companions and knowledge, but there are some things that she may not be able to handle.

A/N: I chose to make Fai a bard, as we rarely ever see his raw magical ability. He fights as well as charms and beguiles, which are bard traits. It is also hard to try to keep these characters recognizably IC, as they have all lived very different lives when compared to their Tsubasa counterparts. Sakura, obviously, was brought up in a place where she was expected to be tough. Kurogane has no princess and Fai has no curse (yet). I usually enjoy Tsubasa AU's but one of the hardest things in them is to keep the characters recognizable. Please, if I stray, let me know?

* * *

"Ah, fresh materials to work with," the black robed figure purred, looking at Sakura and her companions. "Excellent."

Sakura blinked, shocked still as the worm eaten corpses were tugged upwards, shambling towards them without mind or will. They had fought through zombies and skeletons… but to see the actual act of animation, watching the maggots drop and bits of flesh crackle and snap with the forces goading it to move caused bile to rise in her throat. As one who dealt with spirits, with souls, to see flesh move without heart or soul to guide them made her flesh crawl_._

Behind the man in black robes (she wondered if he was some kind of priest) was the one they had been looking for.

Upon arriving at Fort Locke, they had discovered that several patrols had gone missing with the new Fort Commander. Because of this, there were no more patrols along the roads. No patrols into the Mere. No one to protect West Harbor as it recovered. Sakura could not allow that to happen.

"Attack, my children," the priest hissed, and Sakura gagged at the sweet clinging stench that filled the room. "Let us add their-"

"If I might get a word in," Fai interrupted, stepping out from behind the stupefied girl. "Surely you can think of a better line? If I'm going to record your last words, perhaps you can come up with something more creative. Less clichéd, perhaps?"

Silence descended, the zombies halted briefly at the surprised pause from their master.

"Idiot," Kurogane growled before charging forward. Fai, in the background, just laughed before humming a tune.

Sakura had to stop herself from staring at her companions- and that hesitation cost her. One of the zombies swung out, making her shriek in dismay as it hit her- barely hard enough for her to feel it, but the touch left her feeling unclean. Her bow worked well as a club, but it was more useful aimed at the priest.

The priest, as it turned out, didn't get time to reword himself as his body was quickly peppered with arrows and crossbow bolts. Kurogane, in the background, was grunting and hissing as he took out the zombies which kept on twitching and flopping as he cleaved their limbs from their bodies.

Sakura quickly covered her mouth and looked away- and found that she had a much easier time dealing with pulling her arrows out of the body in front of her than she would have thought. The living man in the corner approached her hesitantly… and Sakura nearly sagged in relief. At least some of the patrol _had_ survived.

"You would be..?" she asked, barely noticing the cold sweat that popped out on her skin.

"Commander Tam of Fort Locke," the man began, and Sakura did her best to hear him. Even the globe of light she had summoned seemed to be getting pale and she pulled her cloak a little closer. Swallowing hard, she wove towards the wall.

"Are you all right?" she heard herself ask, looking at the previous Fort Commander… just in time to feel her knees collide with the floor cobbles.

"I should be asking…"

It felt like suddenly being covered in water- sound and light receded as her chest clenched.

"Sakura?"

"My men-"

More words were spoken, but she couldn't make them all out.

"Miss-"

"Sakura!"

* * *

_Sand crunched and shifted under her slippers as she made her way over the dunes to the ruins that arched overhead. Her arms and feet moved stiffly, shuffling as the night wind bit through her thin garb. Starlight and moonlight lit the way; there were no trees or clouds to hide them from view. Parched, cold air swirled around her, but it was blocked by the massive stone walls as she finally arrived…_

_She could make out the moon._

_But it wasn't _her_ moon. The asteroids that trailed the moon, its tears, were absent. She had never seen sand, outside of dreams. _Dreams._ This had to be a dream._

_Yet no dream had ever left her feeling tired, her feet sore from the sheer distance she was walking on a treacherous surface with thin soled shoes. The smell was dusty, none of the rich humid rot that was a swamp. It was wrong, it wasn't right- and why couldn't make herself stop? _

_All she could do was watch. The body felt strange, weak, young, _soft_ and completely different from the girl of the Mere. She tried to look around, see anything besides sand, sand, sand and stone before her, or hear the aching sob of the wind. Nothing. No spirit guide followed her, no spirits flitted through the night. The stone got closer… and Sakura got angrier. Whatever was going on- she had to fight it somehow-_

_ He was calling her name. Someone she was waiting for, someone she knew. Not her father, not Fai or Kurogane. It was… His name was on the tip of her tongue, even though she had never spoken it before. _

_ She rolled her head, feeling her lips gape open in a tipsy smile as her eyes lit upon brown on brown. Still, whoever was controlling the body didn't think it mattered much. Her stomach fluttered with urgency as she had something else to look at, something else important to-_

_ -to-_

_ Her knees buckled, and her knuckles met the strange design that swept around in a circle- and the room shivered and shrieked as it split apart. _

_ She knew that this wasn't how this was supposed to be. She was Sakura- Sakura of West Harbor, dammit, and like hell she was going to ride behind someone's eyes like a ghost! _

_ As the stone parted, she paused mid-air like she was held by spider silk and she fought to get her hands open, to grab something- anything- lashing out against what held her against her will-_

_ White cold pain split her hand as the bone was pierced, metal glittering through the blood of her wound and she felt _satisfaction.

_ Through her palm was a silver shard. _

_ As long as she could hold on to that, if it was part of her… then… _

* * *

It wasn't the cemetery.

It lacked the scent of rotten flesh that accompanied the ghasts and zombies, and the empty rustle that followed the walking skeletons. Instead there was a scent of horse, burnt food and sweat. Voices, human voices out under the sky were all around. And there were spirits, slipping quietly and unseen by the material as they went about their business of being. Cut wood still dressed in bark came into view as she struggled to open gummy eyes.

So, she was in Fort Locke.

Their first arrival had caused its own frustrations, as well as surprises, she recalled. They had gotten there, and found out that the new Commander was afraid to look for his own missing patrols. In fact, he refused to send out anyone else for fear of losing them. She had offered to go and find them, and…

"Ah, the princess has awakened," a silvery voice chimed in, and a weight she had not noticed was taken off her forehead. Blue eyes and a bland smile appeared before her: Fai. Dry eyes blinked, getting the gunk out as she ran her tongue over cracked lips. She took a breath, coughed, and coughed again when her voice wouldn't come out.

"Kuro-tail, could you get our leader here some water like a good imp?"

"That is _not_ my name you-"

Sakura choked, and coughed again. The light abruptly hid as another body squatted beside her. A thick rope of flesh flicked across her gaze and it took her a moment to remember what it was- Kurogane's tail. Her head was lifted and a cup put to her lips. Forcing herself to swallow, she coughed and choked, then swallowed again as water ran down her chin.

They all seemed so tall; that was when Sakura realized she was actually lying on the ground, outside, on a bedroll.

"The priest of Ilmater here was able to remove the disease," Fai said quietly, and the hand tilting her up moved down to wrap around her shoulders, helping her sit up. She felt weak as water. "You'll be fine with some rest and as strong as ever. You missed quite a fight, but you wouldn't let us leave until we had finally gotten the rest of Tam's patrol. After that you were… mostly… incoherent." His eyes cut back towards the large figure propping her up. Sakura blamed it on her foggy head, but only now did she notice that the arm propping her up belonged to Kurogane. Her eyes dropped.

His arms were covered in cloth- for the time being, he was not in armor. Neither was Fai. Strangely enough, she was that he was tattooed with a holy symbol on the inside of his arm; a open gauntlet set with an eye. It took her a moment to process, but she recognized it. It was the symbol of Helm.

For herself, she was marked by Selune, goddess of the moon. Darkness hid from her, and it gave Sakura the promise of bringing light in the deepest of night. Helm… god of protectors; all protectors, be they guards or mercenaries.

Fai, she absently noted, had no such symbol.

"You got the worst of the disease, once we ran out of potions and kits," a voice interrupted, and Commander Tam looked down at her. "You did your best, but you were out of it. Fortunately, your two bodyguards were more than a match for that stupid…" The tall man furrowed his brow, as his jaw trembled. "Patrols will resume into the Mere after this. I can't believe that security became this lax. We owe you our thanks, young lady."

Sakura's eyebrows went up. "Bodyguards?"

"Well, considering how these two young men," and here Fai tittered while Kurogane snorted, "followed you, I made an assumption. The part celestial here called you their leader." The Commander carried himself with the ease of someone associated with command, and his bearing was one of someone higher born than your common country soldier. Yet he squatted beside her comfortably, tilting his head. "Interesting folk, these two. If you aren't their leader, how did you all meet? Men of demon blood and angel blood don't usually run in the same circles."

"I'm going to Neverwinter on a task," Sakura managed to say, but her voice was rasping. "We just… sort of met…"

Three men were looking at her, in her underwear. This has to be a nightmare. One of her hands flopped forwards, trying to find a blanket. None of her effects were near.

None.

No one but Kurogane would have noticed her muscles clench, because she simply didn't have the strength to stiffen much. He certainly had to have noticed the way she went completely limp against him when he dragged her back into view.

"It's fairly rare for Harbormen to leave the Mere, and when they do, they tend to have a good reason," Tam went on, looking at her. "Fai, your celestial, mentioned that you had said West Harbor came under attack. I'm sorry… well, I'm more sorry for the idiots who took you all on. Your people have that reputation for a reason."

"Will the roads be safer now?"

"With the patrols, maybe. While you were out more refugees made it here for protection." The barely visible lines on Tam's face got deeper as he exhaled. "There are still bandits, and the animals of this area have been acting stranger and stranger. Until some of that is cleared up, I'm afraid I can't say how safe the Mere can be."

Sakura closed her eyes.

"You probably need your sleep. I'll leave you alone for now."

She heard Tam's mail jingle as he stood and walk away. The arm holding her up let her lay back against the pallet, before pulling her green cloak over her for her modesty's sake.

"Well, I'm going to see if I can talk to some of the people here… if we're going to get to Neverwinter, all the information we can muster will be useful," Fai responded. "You just sit here and rest, and let us take care of you."

"Since when am I the leader?" she asked softly, grateful that she wasn't having to sit up anymore. The ground had started to tilt sideways.

"My dear, haven't you realized that strays will always follow you if you feed them?" Fai laughed easily, and she could hear his light footfalls as he stepped away. "Rest well."

There was a soft swish next to her hear, and an even softer growl. "Your pack is here."

If she had the strength, she would have winced.

"You mentioned a shard when I was carrying you back." Another would be wince. "It is still there, in your pack. You repeated something about it, several times." There was a pause. "I can smell traces of the lower plains on it. Do you know what it is?"

Sakura would have pressed her lips together, but she was too tired. "No. My father… thinks that was the reason my village was attacked. I'm taking it to Neverwinter to see if I can find a mage to inspect it. It's the closest place that might have someone strong enough to know."

"And those things we fought, at the Inn, were what came after your village?"

"Uh-huh."

She felt sleep calling her, calling her back to wherever she had been earlier, in her dreams. A dream that hadn't been her own.

"Then we're going to Neverwinter," Kurogane said quietly, as sleep drew her back.

* * *

In another world, on another pallet, lay another Sakura. Opening her eyes, she absently noted that nothing was familiar.

That was okay; she wasn't too familiar with herself.

Her hand ached. Something besides the heavy numbness that filled her world caught her attention, and she drew her left hand out from under the covers. White bandages covered it, but underneath she knew there would be a scar. Images of fighting, of struggle, of _confidence_ in herself echoed, focusing on the scar and what was inside it echoed through her empty mind.

Somehow, the realization was comforting.

It also reminded her… that she _had_ to look for something…

To be continued.


End file.
